The town of Canterbury grew in Roman times because of its position on one of the
trade routes to London.
The Romans built a wall around the town in the 3rd century to defend it against
attacks by Saxons: the medieval wall that can be seen today was built on top of
the old Roman one. The Romans brought Christianity to the area in the 4th century,
but paganism (a type of religion which worships many different gods) became established
in the region after the Romans left.

You can find out more about the town's early history by visiting the Roman Museum
in Butchery Lane, which includes the site of an excavated Roman house.

Entrance to the
Roman Museum

Mosaic at the entrance (made in 2000: "MM" in Roman numerals).
An original Roman mosaic can be seen inside the museum

In about 590AD Kent was ruled by a pagan king called Ethelbert (at that
time England was divided into many small kingdoms). He married Bertha,
the daughter of a French king. Bertha was a Christian, and Ethelbert allowed her
to worship in a small chapel which had been built by the Romans: St Martin's.
In 597 Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine and 40 monks to England to
try to convert the people to Christianity. Ethelbert allowed Augustine to use
St Martin's, which was extended.

You can visit St Martin's on North Holmes Road, off Longport (it is about a 15
minute walk east of the city centre, past St Augustine's Abbey). It is a UNESCO
"World Heritage" site, and is believed to be the oldest parish church
in England that has been in continuous use. Opening times are limited, so check
before going. There is no entrance charge, but a donation is welcome.

Ethelbert converted to Christianity, and he gave Augustine some land in Canterbury
on which to build a cathedral and an abbey. St Augustine's Abbey was founded
in 598. Canterbury became the centre of the Church in England: the most important
religious leader in England still has the title of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The abbey, which is now a ruin, is on Longport (it is about a 5 minute's walk
east from the town centre, on the way to St Martin's Church). It is a UNESCO World
Heritage site, managed by English Heritage. You can walk around the ruins and
listen to an audio guide (in English, French, German, Spanish or Japanese). There
is also a museum which shows some of the objects found on the site by archaeologists.

Augustine created a cathedral in Canterbury. This burned down in 1067, but the
Normans soon built a new one on the same site. About a hundred years later, King
Henry the Second appointed his friend Thomas Becket as Archbishop of
Canterbury. There were bitter disagreements between the two, however. While the
King was at a feast in France he shouted out angrily, "Who will rid me of
this troublesome priest?" Four of the king's knights heard this and travelled
to Canterbury, where they murdered Becket inside the cathedral. The King was sad
when he heard about the murder, because he had not wanted his former friend to
be killed. Soon afterwards the Pope made Becket a saint, and many people started
to go to Canterbury as pilgrims to see Becket's tomb. The arrival of many
visitors helped Canterbury to become a wealthy town. However, King Henry the
Eighth stopped pilgrimages after he created the Church of England, and Thomas
Becket's tomb was destroyed. A candle is now lit at the place where the tomb used
to be.

The cathedral is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and is the main visitor attraction
in the town. Entrance to the cathedral is through the Christ Church Gate
on Sun Street. There is an entrance charge for visitors (worshippers can enter
free). Audio tours are available in a variety of different languages.

View of the cathedral tower from the town.
It is known as Bell Harry Tower

The 14th century poet Geoffrey Chaucer wrote a series of amusing stories
about the journeys of various types of pilgrims from London to Canterbury. These
are called the Canterbury Tales. The stories are one of the most famous
early examples of English literature, and provide interesting insights into life
at that time.

There is an exhibition based on the Canterbury Tales in St Margaret's Church in
St. Margaret's Street. Commentary is available in several languages - a visit
usually lasts between 40 minutes and 1 hour.

The Canterbury Tales exhibition:
inside St Margaret's Church

One of the exhibits: pilgrims accompany Geoffrey Chaucer
on their journey from London to Canterbury Cathedral

The first castle in Canterbury was a "motte and bailey" castle at Dane
John. This was replaced by Canterbury Castle, which was completed during
the reign of King Henry the First (1100 - 1135). The keep of Canterbury Castle
is the fifth largest in England and was one of the first ones to be made of stone.

The Dane John mound still exists, surrounded by an attractive park. The ruins
of the castle (next to Castle Street) can be visited free of charge. Both of these
attractions are to the south of Canterbury, near Canterbury East train station.
Large sections of the Norman wall around Canterbury still exist: you can obtain
a guide to a city trail along the walls from the Tourist Information Centre.

Huguenot refugees came to south England from Flanders (now part of Belgium), escaping
from persecution by Catholics. Many of them settled in Canterbury, where they
were given the right to trade by Queen Elizabeth the First. They brought with
them their weaving and other textile skills. The wealth generated by these new
industries helped to replace the income which had been generated by visiting pilgrims
(a custom which was stopped by King Henry the Eighth after he took over control
of the Church in England).

There are several Tudor-style houses along St Peters Street which used to be used
by the weavers. The buildings are now used as restaurants.

One of the branches of the River Stour runs next to the weavers' houses. Guided
boat tours leave from next to the Ducking Stool in the garden of The Old Weavers
House. A ducking stool was a form of punishment and also a way of testing
if someone was a witch. The person was strapped into the chair, which was then
submerged under the water. If the person was a witch, she would survive, and she
would be killed. If she wasn't a witch, then she would drown, but at least her
name was cleared ...

Canterbury was the birthplace of the poet and dramatist Christopher Marlowe
(1564-1593, often known as Kit Marlowe), who was educated in the town at King's
School. He was a very talented writer but died aged only 29: during his life was
more successful than William Shakespeare, who was born in the same year. His works
include Doctor Faustus, The Jew of Malta, Edward II and Dido - Queen of Carthage.
In 1593 Marlowe was arrested and charged with being an atheist, for which he would
probably have been burnt alive. However, the day before his trial he was killed
in mysterious circumstances. One theory is that he was killed because he had previously
worked for Elizabeth I's spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham and could have revealed
secrets when being tortured.

Marlowe was baptised at St George's Church in Canterbury. Only the clocktower
remains (in St George's Street). The rest of the church was destroyed by German
bombing in 1942 during one of the so-called "Baedeker" air raids, which
were directed against historic cities (the targets were selected from a German
tourist guide to England called Baedeker). The theatre in Canterbury is called
the Marlowe Theatre (in The Friars) - a new theatre opens on this site in October
2011. Nearby there is a statue dedicated to Marlowe.

The Museum of Canterbury (formerly known as the Canterbury Heritage Museum) is
located in Stour Street. It contains a range of exhibits bringing to life the
whole of the town's history. This includes a museum dedicated to Rupert Bear,
a children's character created by Mary Tourtel, who was born in Canterbury. There
are also displays for Bagpuss: a pink and white cat made of cloth which was the
main character in a popular children's TV series. Bagpuss was created in 1974
by an animator from Canterbury called Peter Firmin, who together with writer Oliver
Postgate created TV characters such as the Clangers, Basil Brush, Ivor the Engine
and Noggin The Nog (most British people who were parents or children in the 1960s
or 1970s know these characters).

The West Gate, built in about 1375, was one of eight gates through which
people could enter the town. There is a small museum inside. The public gardens
nearby are decorated with colourful flowerbeds. The West Gate is close to Canterbury
West train station.

* Independent travel to Canterbury
- The quickest way to travel from London to Canterbury is by train. The journey
takes about 1 hour 30 minutes, leaving from either Charing Cross or Victoria station.
Note that there are two train stations in Canterbury (called Canterbury West and
Canterbury East), but it is easy to walk into the town from either of these. For
train timetables and to buy a ticket online, see: Shop/Company/TheTrainline.
- It takes about 1 hour 50 minutes to travel by coach from Victoria Coach Station
in London to Canterbury. For timetables and to buy a ticket online, see: Shop/Company/NationalExpress.

Lonely Planet verdict: Canterbury
"The city of Canterbury is one of the top tourist attractions in
England, and for very good reasons. The medieval centre is simply gorgeous,
while the cathedral that towers above it all is one of the most impressive
you'll see anywhere in Europe"
(extracts from "Lonely Planet Great Britain - 2003 edition",
used with permission)